Reminiscence
by Graceful-Kuja
Summary: Erika Mayflower was found with no memories. Now, three years later, she finds herself thrown into a completely different world full of monsters, handsome strangers, bear-like men and a bloodthirsty Prince. What's a memory-less girl to do? ?/OC
1. Believe

A swirling gray mass of clouds hung drearily overhead, darkening the country town of Thyme. Erika Mayflower took little notice of the cooling weather, due to the fact it rained quite often where she lived and it just became a part of life you got used to. She found it to be perfect weather anyways as she rode her bike down the gravel roads covered in potholes, heading towards her home. Her straight, shoulder length, burnt sienna hair whipped around behind her, a black headband holding any stray bangs out of her face to prevent them from stinging her light brown eyes. Chilly air flowed through her crème colored, loose knit sweater, and she shuddered, thankful she at least wore a light tan tank top underneath, providing some protection from the wind, though she kinda wished she hadn't worn her favorite pair of worn out, holey jeans and brown flip-flips, especially if it was going to rain.

She was your average girl just coming out of high school and going into college after her summer break. She had few friends, because her high school life was spent at home, learning under a private tutor, and therefore that meant she also had no experience of having a boyfriend, or at least, that she could remember. Not even she was a 'perfect' as she wished.

She was adopted after being found in the streets of the city, cold, wet and humiliated. She had no form of memories before waking up in an ally, a young couple standing before her in worry, and confusion. Though they couldn't be blamed, for she dressed as if she was from the medieval age, wearing a corseted silver dress with an overflowing skirt that nearly engulfed her when on the ground, and in her pinned up hair, a diamond encrusted tiara. The latter had, surprisingly, not been stolen during her time unconscious.

The couple immediately took her to a hospital, where she was diagnosed with pneumonia and amnesia, or rather, a case of long term memory loss.

If you think about it, it is indeed a sad thing, but she didn't really notice, for she was put up for adoption after it was discovered she existed nowhere in the computers, and when asked for her name, all she could remember was 'Erika'. A week after being put up for adoption, an elderly couple stepped forward to bring her into their family, for they could never have children, but wanted a teen to assist them in what they needed.

The Mayflowers were rather well off, having enough money to be paid for, for the rest of their lives, and even Erika's. They lived humbly in a simple, two story house with a few extra bedrooms for guests. They were excited to hear that Erika was willing to join their family despite her lack of memory. It also pleased them to know that she was very well-mannered, but she was rather distant (though this can be expected with those lacking a single memory of who they were).

Erika learned quickly, much to their pleasure, and adapted easily into being a girl that seemed to belong in another world to the girl you saw riding her purple bike today. Though she wouldn't admit it out loud to her adoptive parents, she often felt empty, and knew deep down she didn't belong here. It was like this world lacked a certain touch she had been used to and now it was gone. She also felt indifferent, like a smile being forced on for a picture. It just didn't settle with her quite right.

And lately she had been having fainting spells. She would be walking along normally then _BAM_! Out of nowhere, she would being lying on the ground in a dead faint, though she was dreaming of gently fields that seemed to roll on forever and a kind, loving hand guiding her along, but before anything else would be revealed, she would wake, and continue on her business in a dreamy state.

Often, she would find herself sitting awake at night, feeling as though she had lost and forgotten something very dear... Something very important...

It always led back to a certain ring that sat on her right ring finger. A wolf head carved from finely from silver rested there, it eyes made of twinkling sapphire that nearly made her want to cry every time she looked at it, for every time, she could feel the shadow of a lover's embrace around her. Reminding her of the past she could not remember.

Her eyes teared up with the thought as she slowed to a stop along the side of the road, her lips quivering slightly. She knew she longed for that touch again, but had no idea where to look, or even who it was. Should she wait for her memory to come back, if it did at all? What if that person had moved on after three years? Could she stand the pain of finding the person, or would she die of heartbreak?

It all felt like too much to take for her already fragile mind, and she began to cry in frustration. Nobody even understood how she felt. Many say that memory loss is rather common, but all doctors agree that they had never even seen of heard of (besides theoretically) of an actual case of complete memory loss.

"_Be not afraid... Erika..."_

She jolted her head up, looking around for the source of such a gentle, soft spoken voice,"Hello?"

"_Trust in the Stars of Destiny..."_

Erika felt fear creeping into her system as she found nobody near, not even a car. She was all alone on the country road,"W-who are you?"

A light began to form in front of her, making her gasp as it quickly engulfed her before she could even blink, and then she cried out in fear as she was blinded, throwing her arms up to shield her eyes.

"_Be not afraid... Sweet Child..."_

_Reminiscence..._

When Erika came to, the first thing she noticed was the thick, black smoke rolling into her lungs with every breath of air. She began to cough, her already wet eyes watering even more, trying to fan the fumes away from her face as she got off her bike, getting lower to the ground. Her eyes fell on a boy's face, flat eyes wide in fear, and the mouth twisted into a permanent scream made her rear back, she herself screaming in terror as the image burned itself into her mind.

"Over there!"A booming voice hollered,"I want every last maggot found and slaughtered!"There was a short laugh,"Show them how terrible the 'City-State' can be!"

She grabbed her bike off the ground, jumping on it, but made it no further than two feet when she was barreled into by a speeding form. They both fell to the ground with a cry, and the momentum sent them into the bushes, then into the trees, her bike discarded and quickly forgotten as she struggled to push someone off of her. It was a boy no older than she, with long platinum blonde hair pulled back into a loose ponytail that reached his mid back, and wide blue eyes filled with terror. He wore a simple, blue, sleeveless shirt and light gray breeches tucked into boot, and on his back, a quarter staff was strapped there securely.

He took one look at her and in a heartbeat, he helped her to her feet and was dragging her along behind him before she even knew what was happening. She could hear screams behind her, making her want to stop and cover her ears, but the boy wouldn't let her. He simply urged her to keep going until the reached the edge of the tree line, where the crashing of a waterfall could be heard.

She, feeling like she was entirely out of shape, bent over and was panting heavily, coughing hard as she still tried to clear out the smoke in her lungs and the dead boy from her mind. Her stomach heaved, and she barely made it back to the bushes before she vomited. What was going on? Where was she? How did she get there? Who was the boy that just dragged her through the woods?

She felt the bile rise to her mouth, and she stood there for a few moments, vomiting and coughing until she felt a hand rub her back and a wooden canteen was offered to her. Taking it, she quietly said 'thanks', and took a small sip of the water within before handing it back. He pushed it back towards her, and gave her a small smile, though she could see it didn't reach his eyes.

"What's going on?"She rasped hoarsely.

"The City-State surprise attacked us..."He said quietly, almost whispering, looking away sadly.

Erika nodded like she understood, and they were both quiet for a moment, before they both spoke at the same time.

"I'm Jowy-"

"I'm Erika-"

She blushed in embarrassment, and he chuckled slightly,"Jowy."

"Erika."

His eyes lit up suddenly,"You mean the-"

"Why didn't you run East, like I said, Jowy?"A man cut him off, emerging from the trees, with a small squad of blue clad soldiers behind him.

"Captain!"Jowy took a step forward, but Erika, grasped the back of his shirt, hiding behind him and keeping him there,"I... I just..."

The man brushed dirt blonde hair from his face and gave her a seconds glance,"Is that a girl you're hiding behind you?"He thought for a moment,"She's pretty cute."

"Back off, Buster, or I'll punt you like a football."She snapped back. Couldn't he see or hear the people screaming not too far behind him? Why wasn't he rushing to help them?

A chilling laugh made all the men snap to attention, and step aside into two different rows. The man that was now stepping through the trees made her tremble in fear at the wild, crazed look in his eyes that were nearly as dark as his black hair that was cropped short and left un-styled. He wore a silvery-white armor with a deep blue cloak hanging from his shoulders and in his gauntleted right hand was a bloody sword that made her blanch.

Looking at this devilish man, she felt her heart beat faster, from what she thought was fear

"A rat that doesn't know East from West and a spit-fire brat."He glared down at her, and she felt as though he was peering into her soul to burst it into flames,"How cute. It makes me sick."He turned his back to them,"They're not even worth my time. Rowd; kill them."

"Yes sir!"Jowy's Captain nodded for his men to go forward, and Erika felt herself shaking in fear as they drew their swords.

"Captain, who was that man?"He quietly asked, the glare seeming to have affected him too.

Rowd scoffed,"Don't you even know your Prince? That was Luca Blight, _the_ Prince of Highland!"

She felt a familiar pang in her at the sound of that name,"Luca...?"

"So the girl knows of him?"The man turned his back to them,"Anyways, it doesn't matter; kill them."

"Erika, I need you to stand back."Jowy slowly told her, pulling his staff off of his back as the men began to approach them.

"You're going to fight them off yourself?"She screeched, looking around for a place to escape,"Are you crazy?"

"Trust me!"He lunged forward, swiftly hitting a soldier in the chest, crushing a thinned piece of armor.

The words made her blink.

_Trust me._

Family trusted one another. But this boy wasn't family. He was a complete stranger. Friends trusted each other. But she's never had friends. Why should she trust him? Because he practically saved her life, and is fighting soldiers, keeping them away from her. Could she trust this boy who was selflessly putting his life in danger protecting her?

Of course.

She looked around, spotting a soldier sneaking up behind him, so she swooped down, picking up a handful of rocks,"Hey, you!"She hurled one, which thudded against his leg, missing her target of the head, though she wouldn't admit it,"That's not playing fair!"

Erika gulped as she saw a dirty face grin at her, and the soldier turned and ran towards her. She shrieked in response, and darted around the circle of men fighting Jowy as she was chased. Occasionally, she would pause, and attempt to stall him with a rock, but most of the time she missed completely. Jowy watched her from the corner of his eye, wishing he could hurry to help her, but couldn't due to having to fight back the rest of the small squadron of full grown men.

"Get the sword!"He cried, sidestepping a vertical swing of a broadsword,"Get it!"

She looked around, seeing several dead bodies, each holding a sword,"Which one?"

He rolled his eyes at this,"_Any_ of them!"

She scooped one up as she ran by, nearly falling with it's weight, not used to carrying something like it while running, then turned, holding it with the tip pointing towards the soldier chasing her,"Hold it right there!"

It made him pause for a brief second before swinging at her.

"_Be not afraid... Sweet Child of Destiny..."_

Her arm automatically moved to parry it, sliding her blade against his and it caught his thumb, cutting clean through it, much to her luck and surprise as he howled in pain. In anger, he took his sword up in his other hand and swung wildly at her, but she ducked down and stabbed him in the foot, knocking him over. Jowy grinned at this, nodding at her as she looked his way. She gave a shaky laugh, and stood, pulling her sword from the man's foot, and rushing to her new friend's aid.

Rowd glowered, and retreated to the bushes, preparing to get more men to dispose the two brats out of his misery.

_Reminiscence..._

Jowy and Erika stood amongst the pile of dead and unconscious men, both panting heavily. She trembled with the idea of her being the one that may have killed some of them, but after voicing her thoughts, Jowy told her that she had wounded or knocked them out; not once did he see a fatal blow. It comforted her somewhat, but it didn't ease the thought of the dead around her.

"Come on."He tugged her towards a cliff, peering over the edge, at a rushing river, then he walked over to a large stone, using his knife to make a mark in it,"We'll jump into the river before they come back with more men, and if we get separated, we'll come back here!"

She was crouched by the cliff with a pale face,"Look at that current! We won't make it!"

"Erika, we don't have much choice here..."He pleaded, holding out his knife for her to place her mark on the stone,"Either we die here, or we jump and possibly live."

She sighed, taking the knife, and used all of her strength to make another mark, forming and 'X' in the stone,"I guess I've trusted you this far..."

They both moved to the edge, linking arms in hope of staying together once they hit the river, taking a deep breath before they nodded at one another.

Then they leaped.

_**A/N: Soooo... This is my Suikoden II story. It's a romance, but with who, well... You can guess, but I think it's obvious. I hope you all enjoyed the first chapter!**_


	2. Meet the Mercs

"_Grandpa, that strange boy is outside again!"A girl no older than five whined, adjusting her flounced skirt,"He keeps standing by the fence staring at me!"_

_She wore her long, brown hair down, her bangs held back in a lady-like bow, her large, brown eyes knitted in worry as she tugged on an elderly man's martial arts uniform. His face was blurred, as though she couldn't quite remember the features well, as she was watching him peer out a window, chuckling. He then pushed her towards the door in encouragement, though she was digging her Mary-Jane clad heels into the ground._

"_Why not ask him to play with you?"_

"_He's so scary looking!"She whimpered, managing to move behind him, clinging to his leg._

"_I'm sure you seem more frightful to him."_

_She pouted as she was now being picked up and placed outside, the door being shut behind her. A set of dark eyes blinked at her through a space in the fencing and she, deciding to be a bully, threw a stone at it, and sat on her doorstep, crossing her arms over her chest. The rock hit the fencepost, and the boy stood, sticking his tongue out at her and ran off._

"_Erika."A scolding voice from inside called her name,"Go apologize."_

_Tearing up at the fact she was being told to do something she rather not do, she hiccuped a small sob and ran after the boy. She wasn't about to apologize; instead, she was going to make him beg to be forgiven! If she could find him, that is._

"_You don't act like a girl!"A small voice accused from the bushes,making her stop in her tracks,"You're supposed to act like a lady!"_

"_I __am__ a lady, you rotten, no-good skunk!"She shot back as the boy emerged, his hair full of leaves and twigs._

"_See? You act like a boy! If you didn't wear a dress, I would've thought you were one!"_

_In a fit of rage, she tackled the dark-haired boy, biting, scratching and punching, and they wrestled each other until the adults saw this and pulled them apart. She got a swat on the bum from her Grandpa as the boy was guided back home by what she thought looked like soldiers, but she didn't really care about that. The next time she saw him, she was going to make him pay._

"This punk is a waste of time... I wonder where she came from. Hey you! Wake up already! I'll throw ya back in the river again!"

Erika jolted awake, suddenly having the strong need to cough. She felt water escape her lungs and spew from her mouth, and her head then felt severely water-logged. Her mind was groggy, and couldn't quite comprehend why she was cold, wet, and laying on what felt like and even colder rock. Moving her shaking arms, she tried to push herself up, but only ended up collapsing again, her body drained of strength.

What happened? Her mind was too slow to remember... But then the boy came to the front of her mind. Jowy! They had jumped into a river to escape! Was that him yelling at her to get up now? The voice sounded too deep to be his boyish tone. Was he alright? Did he make it?

She groaned, trying to shove herself up again, this time managing to roll over onto her back, and opened her eyes to a foggy forest,"Oooh..."

"So you're finally awake? Hey, can you say your name?"

She rolled her head towards the source of the voice and decided against making a rude hand gesture, and just stared blankly at a man that stood over her. At first glance, he reminded one of a bear, with his large, muscular physique and ratted up, long black hair, but on a closer examination, you would see it was just a brawny man. He wore a yellow tunic, with a leather breastplate over it, and a scabbard attached to his back, holding a broadsword. He also wore simple black breeches tucked into leather boots, and leather gloves, finishing off his wild look.

"I'm Erika..."She rasped, flinching at the sandpaper feeling ing her throat.

"So you can talk, huh."The man scratch his chin in thought,"What the hell were you doing in the river? Did you slip?"

She slowly shook her head, attempting to push herself up, but fell back down with a groan,"People were attacking us... They said they were the City-State Army..."

This made his give her a hard look"The State Army? What are you talking about? We just signed a peace agreement. I can't believe it..."He paused as though something dawned on him,"Huh? Are you a Highlander?"

"No, I'm not."

"Hmm... So where are you from then? If you lie, I'll cut out your tongue."

She squealed in fear, slapping a hand over her mouth, but said nothing.

"The silent treatment, huh? That's not a cute quality in kids."He frowned, and she wasn't sure if she should be creeped out or not,"Anyway, I'm Viktor, mercenary leader of the Allied Cities of Jowston – the City-State."

"Viktor, are you having fun picking on that poor kid?"A smoother voice called from the trees.

Erika finally gathered the strength to sit up and look at the newcomer, finding herself blushing crimson. The man was quite handsome, though had a 'pretty-boy' face. His ashen blonde hair was pulled back in a ponytail, and a blue bandanna kept his messily cut bangs from falling in his prussian blue eyes. He wore a matching cloak over a black tunic and breeches, and at his hip was a simple sword.

"What are you talking about, Flik? I wouldn't do that... I'm a nice guy! But anyways, what happened to the other one?"

His eyes were slightly downcast as he looked her way then back to Viktor."It's no good. We lost sight of him. I hope he made it..."

She gasped,"Jowy..!"

"Too bad..."There was a short moment of silence before she was faced again."Okay, listen up. Whoever you are, you're gonna be my personal guest for awhile. You may not find the accommodations too comfortable, though."She paled and he laughed."Don't look so worried. We're not going to eat you or anything."

She muttered something under her breath at this, then cried out as she was suddenly grasped by the wrist and jerked to her feet,"Hey! Ow!"

"Hey, Flik. Look at this."They leaned in close, examining the ring closely, turning her hand this way and that.

"It's a Highland make, for sure."

"We'll definently have to take her in now, in case she's a spy, you know."

"You won't listen if I say we shouldn't."

"Hey I don't like taking little girls prisoner either. I'm just doing my job."She was shoved forward,"Start walking. It'll be night before we make it back to the fort."

"Listen, I don't even know what a Highlander is! Where's the City-State? And why are you dressed so weird?"She faced them, waving her arms around frantically,"Can't you see I'm a damsel in distress?"

"Yeah, nice try. Move."

Groaning, she let herself be pushed and shoved along the forest, wishing desperately to know what on Earth was going on.

_Reminiscence..._

When the trio broke through the trees and onto a path leading up to a wooden post surrounded perimeter, Erika wanted to collapse and wither into the ground. She was panting, wheezing, and dying of thirst, but the bear man didn't seem to notice that she was extremely out of shape and about to die of an asthma attack (and she didn't even have asthma!). The more handsome one seemed to notice, and took pity on her as they neared the gates, offering a canteen, though it was rather late, but she gladly took it anyways. She took a large gulp, and handed it back with a soft and shy 'thanks'.

He gave her a comforting smile, though she felt like she was about to die of major confusion. Seriously! She hadn't felt so confused since she was forced to take advanced math classes! Of course, she felt more like Viktor was going to eat her. So, with this in mind, she looked around at her surroundings, hoping it wouldn't be the next to last thing she saw. The last being an open fire with her strung over it.

It was as Viktor said; a fort. Men in baby blue uniforms and green bandannas sparred with each other in the open space before a large, wooden fortress. The ringing of swords clanging against one another made her feel as though she was in a medieval era and she wondered briefly if she was at a Renaissance Festival. Horses snorted as grooms brushed down their coat, and next to them were archers shooting at straw dummies, some missing entirely. In the distance she could hear a dog barking and a cat hissing.

Then Viktor suddenly turned, opening his mouth wide in a yawn, and she crouched down, throwing her arms over her head.

"Don't eat me!"She cried, trembling while the two men stood there, bewildered at the girl's antics. It wasn't the first time that somebody had been intimidated by the brawny man, but this _was_ a first."At least kill me first, you cannibal!"When she heard nothing happening, it only scared her more,"I-I hope I give you a stomach ache!"

Booming laughter made her jerk her head up, tears of fright in her eyes, and suddenly her head was being rubbed like one would a child,"You're pretty weird, kid! We ain't gonna eat you, so calm down. You're just going to spend some time in a cell until we figure out what to do with you."

This made her pale even more, and she shrieked,"Modern day slave traders? L-listen... My parents w-will pay you! Just let me g-go and we can f-forget all a-about this!"

Flik shook his head, shoving Viktor away,"I swear, your face scare more people than monsters do."

"This lovable face? Naw, I think it's the loud voice."He protested.

"It's the face."Erika deadpanned.

While Viktor sulked, Flik knelt down next to her, so that they were at eye level,"Listen, we're just a band of Mercs that are busy with keeping an eye out for spies and ambushes. We won't sell you off and we certainly won't eat you,"His lips twitched up in amusement,"At least I won't. Viktor might."

"Hey!"

Erika's face was still full of fear and worry,"I'm not a spy! I really don't know where I am, or what a Highlander is and where the City-State is!"

He pointed to her ring,"Then explain that."

She looked at it, the sapphire eyes gleaming in the moonlight,"I... Don't know where I got it. I can only remember back three years ago."She looked up at him with pleading eyes,"I was found with it three years ago! I don't remember how I got it!"

"You don't remember?"The bear joined back in,"How can you not remember? That thing has to be worth more than we are!"

"I have amnesia!"She snapped irritably,"It's when you have a severe case of memory loss! I may regain my memories tomorrow or I might never get them back; nobody ever knows!"He held up his hands for peace,"And what does it matter! This is just a ring!"

The two men looked at each other, then Flik stood, pulling Viktor to the side,"So what do you think?"

They stared at the girl who look ready to start hissing,"I don't know... If you ask me, it's a bit strange. Even the way she dresses says something is off..."

"She really might not have memories."

"We'll just have to wait and see, I guess. Let's keep an eye on her, and we'll see if she does something that'll give her away."

Sighing in union, they watched as she screeched and slammed her flip-flop down on a spider.

_**A/N: So ta-da! Chapter two! I admit that this story is a couple years old. I found on my laptop the other day, and decided to post it and see what everybody thinks about it. I thought it was okay, considering I haven't altered it in any way. =p**_

_**By the way, in the last chapter, Luca actually says 'rats that don't know East from North.' I felt pretty dumb after I saw that. XD**_


	3. WHAM edit

_**A/N: EDIT***** I FORGOT TO ADD IN SOME PARTS ON THE END FROM MY FLASH DRIVE. SORRY I'M LAME. JUST REREAD AFTER SHE WIGS OUT ABOUT HER FLASHBACK. I'D SAY AFTER THE FIRST 'WHAM'. THAT IS ALL. AUTHOR HAS SPOKEN.**_

Erika couldn't help but feel like she was in a dream, though one could hardly blame her. As one who suffers amnesia, her mind was already quite fragile, and things were somewhat harder for her to accept. She could be passed out somewhere on the side of the road with her bike after one of her fainting spells. Perhaps this was all an illusion created by her delirious mind? It was quite possible, according to several Psychologists that knew of her dreams of grassy fields and a guiding hand. They all said it was a fantasy world that she conjured up to help herself cope with her problems. And she did not doubt it.

At least, that is what she told herself as she was led inside of the sticky warm fort. She cared little of the details, keeping her eyes to the wooden floor as she shuffled along between Flik and Viktor, choosing to not acknowledge the scenery around her. All she heard was a loud jumble of voices, yelling and chatting up a storm. Viktor would greet most, boasting that he caught a spy, earning hoots and hollers of approval from his men, while Flik kept a firm grip on her bicep, should she try to make a run for it, but she really didn't know where she was, so where would she run to? It seemed rather pointless to her, but her imagination was a little weird like that. How else could she explain this occurrence?

_**Clang!**_

She looked up she heard the sound of metal bars being swung open, and she found herself being pushed into a room that looked like a cell. She looked all around, quickly examining the area that she guessed she would be kept in, frowning when she saw the ground was absolutely dirty, with a pile of straw in one corner, and a couple of wooden crates covered with a burlap tarp. She turned to the two men opening her mouth to protest but was cut off with a stern look from the bear-like man.

"This will be your room for awhile. It's small and not too comfortable but you'll have to live with it since you're our prisoner."He stated, shutting the bars between them.

"Whatever, you... You... You bear!"She pitifully shot back, stomping her foot childishly,"I didn't do anything to deserve being put in here!"

They ignored her as they began to leave, but Viktor paused briefly, just to say,"It gets pretty cold at night, so try to bundle up."

"With _what_?"She snapped, but received no reply, so she heaved a sigh,"My dreams would put me in a cell..."

She eyed the pile of straw for a moment, before walking over to the crates, ripping the tarp off of them, and throwing it over the pile, and made herself comfortable on top. She leaned her back into the corner, glaring at the door balefully. She could hear crickets outside, so she could safely assume it was either evening, or it had become night swiftly. It felt like she had been there forever, or at least, felt like she had been asleep forever. It was only a matter of time before she would wake up, and be on her way. Her adoptive parents were probably worried sick, knowing that she was rarely late unless something happened.

"I'll wake up soon..."She leaned her head back, resting her hands on her knees,"And I'll forget all about this fantasy world..."

"_What if it is no dream?"_

Erika scoffed at her mind for bringing back that voice, just to argue with her,"Because, you don't see a bright light a end up somewhere else in the real world. That would take magic, and magic isn't real."

"_Only to those who do not believe..."_

She fiddled with the ring removing it from her right hand, gazing sadly at the sapphire eyes,"A person without memories won't ever know what to believe..."

_Reminiscence..._

Early the next morning, Viktor wasn't all that surprised that the soldier Pohl, the one he put in charge of taking care of the prisoner, had come to the meeting hall with a complaint that the girl had tried to bust out when he opened her cell. In fact, he found it quite humorous that such a small teenager had managed to knock her caretaker aside and make it several feet down the hall before being tackled and thrown back inside her cell. Why, he was sure he could hear her yelling to be 'let go' from miles away, her voice carried so well.

"C'mon you jerk-faces!"He heard her screech as he began to trek downstairs, it becoming harder to hold back his booming laughter the more he heard,"Just let me go, I won't press charges or anything! HEY! Don't ignore me! That's rude! Yo! You! Yeah, you! Get over here and let me out! What? What do you mean 'Viktor's on his way'? Who cares! Let. Me. OUT!"

He waved his men away from the cells, dismissing them as he stood in Erika's line of sight, making her instantly glower at him darkly, earning herself a grin,"Somebody's energetic today."He examined her carefully, taking in her haggled appearance, and bloodshot eyes, and safely deduced from that, that she didn't sleep a wink through the night,"Rough night?"

"You've no idea..."She growled at him venomously, stalking over to the bars, and clenched them tightly with her fists,"I want out; now."

"Well, I was thinking about letting you out to do a few chores, in exchange for food, but..."Viktor tapped his chin as though he was thinking, then gave her a sidelong look,"But I hear somebody tried to bust out not too long ago."

She looked at him balefully, releasing the bars, opting to simply lean on them instead,"What do you expect? I don't even know where I'm at, and all I know is that I'm dreaming."She copied his sidelong look, twisting it into a sneer,"But it seems to become a nightmare every time I see your ugly mug."

"Why you-!"He growled, stomping forward, stopping only when his face a few inches away from her own, making her lean back away from his, but kept her arms on the bars,"Listen, brat. You ain't dreaming. This is very real. You're a Highlander that I've taken prisoner. I'd be a good little girl if I were you, or else you'll never be let out."

"Viktor, I thought I told you to stop picking on the kid."A voice joined in, making both of the turn their heads to see Flik standing a ways off, his arms crossed over his chest in a scolding manner,"Besides, you don't know for sure if she's really a Highlander. She could have bought that ring, or somebody could have given to her."

"Who's side are you on?"The bear-man replied, but back away from the cell,"Besides, surely you've noticed her accent."

"Well, yeah. But..."

This made her tilt her head curiously. She had an accent? Nobody ever mentioned that she had an accent before... Were they mistaken? Or maybe she had picked up an accent from living in the rural parts of Thyme* since she was discovered over three years ago. It was possible, but she never really noticed...

Her eyes became wide, and she suddenly felt the urge to slap herself. Somebody _has_ mentioned an accent to her before! It was one of her first memories of when she was in the orphanage!

_She was placed in an orphanage, a dreary place that she never truly liked, but never truly disliked either. She felt little emotions about it, but she supposed that in the years to come, she would still hold that place close to her heart. It allowed for her to start anew. It gave her the chance of a new beginning, and she would always be grateful for that. But it was not the ideal place for a child to grow up._

_She was there for quite some time, though it took nearly two whole months before she was deemed well enough to be up for adoption. The days were stifling and crowded. The nights were always cold, and lonesome. She did not have her own room for long. Children would come and go. Some lost their parents to death. Some had parents that no longer loved them. Some parents could not care for their children, and had to give them up. It was a truly sad place, but the children comforted each other, but she rarely offered the comfort that her roommates longed for. She was an empty book. She could provide them no knowledge. No empathy. No sympathy. Nothing._

"_You look like a story-book princess."_

_She remembered those words clearly. Such an innocent saying... But it made her smile as she felt a comforting embrace fall over her shoulders, as though the seven words brought her senses to life. All because of a child, no older than six. The little boy had been abused, yet he was such a jovial being. Never without a smile, or curious look. He had been placed in her room after she had been there for a couple weeks. She never really paid the other children any heed, but his words brought her to Earth._

_She looked at herself, wearing the dress she was found in, looking entirely out of place, but it brought her some comfort. Something familiar to surround her..._

"_I suppose I do, child."She smiled at him, and he was nearly instantly sitting next to her._

"_You have a funny accent. Are you from another country?"_

_She thought about it for several moments, but then a word came to her as an epiphany,"Yes. I am."_

_It was silent for several moments, then the boy spoke up again,"Where?"_

"_Oh, few from this world know of it."She stated simply, as though her mouth was moving on its own accord._

"_I still wanna know! I'll keep it a secret if you want! Pinky promise!"The boy held up his pinky finger as if to prove a point._

"_Very well then."She wrapped her own pinky around his, and they shook upon it,"I shall tell you then."_

"_Alright!"He cheered, earning another, small smile._

_..._

_..._

_..._

_..._

"_Highland."_

Erika jerked away from the bars with a furious shriek, acting as though the bars were white hot, making both men look at her, startled by the sudden outburst when she had been silent moments ago. She clutched her head as a pulsing headache hammered against her skull as the word repeated itself. Highland. Highland. Highland. HIGHLAND! She _was_ from Highland? NO! Her memories were too fragile! She was simply imagining that she had said that to the boy! She was _NOT_ from this cursed dream world!

"_What if it is no dream?"_

"Sh-shut up..."She whispered hoarsely,"It's... It's not real..."

"_Only to those who do not believe..."_

"SHUT UP!"She screamed, slamming herself to the floor, and continued to say the two words, punching the ground in between each set, as if that could silence the jumble of words inside her mind.

_**WHAM!**_

"_Calm your mind..."_

"SHUT UP!"

"_The truth lies within you..._

_**WHAM!**_

"_**Your memories hold the key.**_"

"SHUT UP!"

She went to punch the ground again, but her left wrist was grasped tightly, and she was jerked up, but she was in a fit of rage, so, she swung her right hand forward. It connected with a chest, earning an 'oof!', and she jerked free, throwing another punch at whoever it was. The attack was caught within Flik's palm and seeing that she was already moving to attack again, he grudgingly struck her on the temple, effectively knocking her out. Viktor caught her by the armpits, his face contemplative as she slumped over as dead weight, and he drug her over to the crates, dumping her on top of them.

"Well. I think she's off her rocker, if you know what I mean."He stated, jerking his thumb towards the unconscious Erika.

Flik shook his head, joining Viktor next to her,"What do you think got into her? Was it something we said?"

"Maybe. I noticed she reacted when I mentioned her accent. Do you think she's embarrassed by it?"

"She doesn't really seem the type to get embarrassed easily."Flik pinched the bridge of his nose,"I hate it when you drag me into your messes..."

"You know, I hate it when I drag myself into these messes."Viktor added with a sheepish look,"The best we can do is just leave her in the cell for now. She may be water logged from her dip in that river yesterday."

"Maybe Dr. Huan's assistant can look at her when he gets here I the next few days."The two began to leave the cell, locking it behind them,"If she really doesn't have memories, he might be able to talk to the Doctor about it."

"Yeah.."The bigger man paused, then shrugged,"We'll have to keep her until we can properly interrogate her though."

"You idiot..."

It wasn't long before the unconscious girl began to whimper as images bombarded her mind.

_**A/N: *Thyme is the town Erika lived in with her adoptive parents. Mentioned in the first sentence of the story.**_

_**Sorry for the long wait! I should have the next chapter up soon!**_

_**Tell me what you thought of this one, please?**_


	4. This Sucks

_**A/N: I'd like to take this moment to thank my handful of reviewers! It always makes me glad to know people read and like my story! If there's something that you feel that I need to change, or work on, then please, feel free to let me know! I'm always open to suggestions and constructive criticism!**_

_**I'll try to pick up the pace with my updates, but I'm trying to graduate high school with somewhat decent grades. After May, I'll have much more time on my hands...**_

_**Until I start college. XD**_

_**PLEASE READ THIS PART THOUGH! THE BEGINNING OF THIS CHAPTER IS MEANT TO BE KINDA CONFUSING! I MEAN FOR IT TO BE LIKE HER MEMORIES ARE JUMBLING TOGETHER AS SHE BEGINS TO REMEMBER SOME THING. ALRIGHT? ALRIGHT.**_

_**ALSO, SINCE MANY PEOPLE ARE ASKING, ERIKA IS LIKE A WOMANLY RIOU WITHOUT MEMORIES. NO, RIOU WILL NOT BE POPPING UP IN THE STORY. OKAY? OKAY.**_

_**PLEASE ENJOY YET ANOTHER LAME CHAPTER BY AN OVERLY LAME AUTHOR.**_

"_I want the two of you to eat up! You're both too skinny for children your age! Once you finish with your food, I get you in some new clothes; you're going to be staying with me from now on."_

"_Who are you?"_

"_Don't worry! Big Sister Nanami is here!"_

"_I'm Jowy… Jowy Atreides…"_

"_Quit acting like a little tomboy, Nanami."_

"_S-shut up!"_

"_Erika, have you been training like I told you?"_

"_I'm going away for a while. I'll bring you back a souvenir or something. When I get back, we'll finish our match."_

"_When you return, I'll be able to beat you! Just wait and see!"_

"_Nanami! Have you been skipping out on your katas*?"_

"_You may be smaller than your enemy, but with enough practice, you can read their movements, and you'll be untouchable."_

"_We'll make this our little secret, alright?"_

"_I don't understand…"_

"_Erika! Grandpa Genkaku found you! Don't. Ever. Make. Me. Worry. Like. That. Again!"_

"_OW! Why'd you have to punch me so hard…!"_

"_Erika… Thanks for being a brat."_

"_You're welcome?"_

"_I made you some yummy food!"_

"_Oh… Um… I… Already ate… At Jowy's."_

"_I have a special present for the two of you. You've both been training hard, and I think it's time you have your own weapons. Whenever you leave the Dojo take them with you, should you need to defend yourselves."_

"_You're something special. It's nice to be able to relax, and act like I'm normal, like everybody else. I guess I owe you for giving me that chance…"_

"_Naw, don't mention it. It's what friends are for."_

…

…

…

"_Will… You marry me?"_

Erika's eyes snapped open, the gray orbs fluttering all about, absorbing their surroundings, confusion rising in her mind. Tears streamed down her cheeks as she felt the remnants of lips against her own faded away. Are those really memories? Are those voices just dreams? Is this all just a dream? Why? She seemed so happy! Her voice sounded so happy! And the other voices! Whose were they? She caught three names, but there were four voices, five if she counted her own. Who asked her to marry them? Who were these people? Who? WHO?

She sat up slowly, her back aching since she had been laid on the wooden crates in her cell, and she placed her face in her hands to muffle her sobs. Why couldn't she just remember? Why must it all be like a puzzle, assuming they were real? Oh, how she yearned to remember! It like an itch she couldn't scratch! It taunted her! The memories were just out of her reach; she just needed a way to get to them!

She looked at her ring, resting on her right ring finger, then slipped it off and onto her left hand, trying to see if it felt right; it merely gave her the feeling of emptiness,"Why me…?"

"Oh! You're awake!"She looked up to see a semi-familiar face standing at the bars of her cell,"I guess that's good."

It was a boy who seemed to be either in his late teens or early twenties, his head of red hair making him easy to spot, along with his freckled face. He wore the standard uniform she assumed this little 'Mercenary Army' donned, making her frown. It reminded her that she was currently being held a prisoner. Which reminded her she was annoyed. This reminded her that she was having an emotional and metal crisis.

"Anyways, my name's Pohl. The boss wants me to look after you while you're staying here, so after you eat some breakfast, I need you to do a few things for me, as long as you don't try to run again."

She stared at Pohl for several moments, perhaps even minutes. If she did something that would keep her busy, then she might not think so much about everything that had been happening to her. But why should she work for them? She wasn't a voluntary guest here. She was a prisoner against her will. Then again, she wasn't really in the mood to fight things. Maybe she would wake up from this dream faster if she cooperated? That was a silly notion. Dreams always ended when you woke up, not due to certain happenings in the dreams.

"Fine."She said hoarsely, much to her astonishment. Her voice sounded horrible! Like somebody had forced her to scream for hours!

"You have to swear you won't make a run for it if I let you out."He gave her a wary look, remembering the last time he opened the cell door.

She nodded,"I swear."

"Alright,"He unlocked the cell door, opening it so she could walk out, watching her closely for any sign that she was getting ready to run,"Follow me."

She followed him down the short hallway, coming out at what looked like a Blacksmith's, making her feel sweltering hot until they passed that part of the room completely. On the other side of the hall was a storage room, where a rather portly woman stood, hollering orders at a group of men that were moving things around inside. The two turned to the right, walking up a set of stone stairs, and up onto the main level, where a bustle of voices were originating from a Mess Hall of sorts. Their destination was a bar, where a young woman stood behind.

She was pretty, wearing a pink Han dress, with black and jade accents, making her creamy skin and black hair stand out. She looked nice, but her dark eyes held a smoldering fire in them as she began yelling at a soldier to 'Stop rough-housing'. The woman's voice was strong, carrying over all the other voices, making her seem far more intimidating. And Pohl was leading her right to this woman, much to her dismay.

"Hey, Leona, can we get some food for this kid?"Erika rose her brow when he called her a kid, but kept silent,"She hasn't ate since Viktor brought her here last week."

'Leona' gave her a sympathetic look, before walking into another room, Erika assumed it was a kitchen, returning a few minutes later with a bamboo tray,"Here you go. Eat up; you're already too skinny to be skipping out on meals."

"_I want the two of you to eat up! You're both too skinny for children your age!"_

She forced a smile on, thanking the woman, and sat on a stool at the bar, staring at the contents of the tray before touching anything on it. It looked similar to Chinese food, consisting of a form of Fried Rice, and some sort of noodles with sliced vegetables in a broth. They called this breakfast food? This was more like lunch, or dinner foods. Shrugging as if to say 'whatever', she reached for the cup on the tray, peering into it and deduced that it was some kind of tea, and took a big gulp of it. The warm liquid soothed her aching throat, making her sigh quietly. Her adoptive mother used to make a similar tea...

Shaking her head, she expelled the thought, homesickness striking her in the gut, and she glared at the food before her, and reached for a fork, but grabbed chopsticks instead. She looked at it strangely, frowning as she remembered the last time she had seen a set of the wooden utensils. It was at a Japanese restaurant, back when she was first adopted. She had gotten frustrated and snapped them in half when she couldn't work them properly. Thinking back, it was kinda funny, since she was extremely emotional back then, but she had overcome the temper tantrums... To a certain extent.

As Leona and Pohl chatted, she tried to remember how her adoptive parents explained how to use them without dropping the food. She remembered that you were supposed to hold one like a pencil, but that was it. Holding the sticks awkwardly, she tried to pick up on of the vegetables, but the two sticks crossed over one another, make her frown deepen. Adjusting them between her fingers, her next attempt was better, as she had managed to lift it to her mouth, but it fell before it made it the whole distance. Seeing this was proving to be just as agitating as it was three years ago, she used her free hand to try to keep them steady when she tried once more.

"Hey, Leona! Is breakfast ready yet?"A gruff voice called from a set of steps to Erika's left, and a groggy Viktor came stumbling down, making his way sleepily to the bar.

Leona paused in her conversation to scowl at him,"It's lunch time, Viktor. Your breakfast was given to Gengen since you were late."She went inside the kitchen, bringing out a large tray pile high with meats, noodles, rice and stuff the amnesia sufferer couldn't even begin to identify,"He's your lunch."

The sleepiness seemed to evaporate from the burly man, and he rushed to the woman, sitting next to Erika, who went completely ignored, but she couldn't really care less as she cursed her eating utensils while failing miserably to use them. Leona mentioned something along the lines of Viktor needing a diet, but sat the tray down in front of him, watching as he dug in with a look of amazement and disgust. She shook her head and returned to conversing with Pohl. After a few minutes of hearing Viktor eat, the memory-less girl scooted over a seat, turning her scalding glare towards him, but kept silent.

"Hey, I didn't think I'd see you out of your cell anytime soon."She turned slightly, giving Flik a blank look as he joined them at the bar, but he opted to stand, leaning on the counter and politely asked for a tea,"We were kinda worried since you've been out for several days."

Viktor, who just noticed the girl, decided to jump in the conversation,"We'll have a doctor look you over when he gets here."

"I see."She simply stated, moving her chopsticks to either hand, looking as though she was ready to just start spearing her food.

"Having troubles?"Flik stifled a laugh as she managed to stabbed a vegetable with one of the sticks and ate it with a triumphant look on her face.

"Most Highlanders can't."Viktor grumbled, earning a sour look from his partner, then added,"So I hear."

"That's nice."She stabbed another vegetable, then quipped,"Where I come from, neither can bears."

"Brat."

"_Erika… Thanks for being a brat."_

She stood suddenly, the scraping of her stool drawing all eyes to her, but she did her best to ignore it,"Mr. Pohl, I believe you had some chores for me to perform?"

The red-head blinked at her, glancing at her practically untouched food,"But you're not finished-"

"Appetites can easily be lost in poor company."She restrained herself from growling, her eyes sliding over to the two mercenary leaders, but her voice dripped with the venom it held,"Let's get the job over with, or take me back to the cell."

"Oh. Okay..." He led her back downstairs, and for a moment, she thought he really was going to take her back to the cell, but across the hall from her cell, was a plain, wooden door that she had yet to notice, and inside, it looked like another storage room, but this one was in utter chaos,"Your task should be pretty simple,"He pointed to the mess of crates that sat in no particular order,"Just push all of them up against the wall. And pick up that rope over there."He gestured to his side,"I'll be waiting outside. Just tell me when you're done."

When he left the room, she instantly began searching the room for windows, or anything else she might be able to escape through, but after what felt like an hour she growled in annoyance. Not a single window, cubbyhole, or door that could lead her out to freedom! What kind of sick dream was she having? Shouldn't she be able to escape, or be able to beat the crap out of everybody in the fort and make a break for it? She held her right arm, making her hand into a fist, and stared at it for a moment, then looked at one of the crates she was told to arrange. It was taller than her by a couple feet, and was probably three or four feet wide, made completely out of wood.

So she punched it to test her 'dream self's power'.

Not only did it hurt her hand, but it made her rear backwards in surprise, knocked off balance, and land flat on her back. She laid there for several moments, cradling her hand to her chest, whining to herself before she sat up, glaring at the crate that remained unharmed. She was having a pretty poor day, and she hasn't really been able to get her mind off the jumble of voices, each phrase coming back to her every time every time somebody said something to trigger them. She wanted to keep her mind off of them! Not have them haunt her at every chance they got!

After a few more minutes of silent complaints, she finally stood, and placed her palms against the crate, deciding it was probably best to just get the stupid chore over with. She pushed against it with all her strength, groaning as it scooted just an inch, but no further, despite how hard she shoved against it. Moving her shoulder against it, rather than her hands, she tried it like that until her face became red from the effort and sweat broke out across her body. Cursing, she stopped, and pulled off her loose-knit sweater, tossing it to the ground, leaving her in her brown tank top, and she pressed her back against the crate and pushed again.

Five minutes later, Pohl heard her screech,"THIS _**SUCKS**_!"

_Reminiscence..._

_**Thump.**_

Erika slid to the floor, panting heavily as sweat streamed down her face, but there was a wide grin on her face. Eight crates! Eight crates that had to of weigh twice, no! Three, maybe four times her own weight! How Pohl ever expected her to move them all on her own was beyond her ability to comprehend, but all that truly mattered to her was that she _did_ _it_! Yes, she was victorious in the task given to her, and it was despite her weak, out of shape body! It had to have taken hours, the crates moving slowly, inch by painful inch.

All that was left was to pick up that rope, the item she would be keeping. It could be useful when she saw an oportunity to escape, after all...

She drug herself over to it, and began wrapping it around her stomach, first looping it through her belt holes on her jeans, moving it up over her waist, stopping just under her breasts. It took several minutes, but she felt it would be worth it in the long run. Anything that could be used to help her escape was worth it. She just needed to wait for the right moment. She could do that... If she wasn't driven insane by the voices in her head.

Gathering her sweater up, she pulled it on over her head, feeling her hair as she did, and grimaced; it felt disgusting! She'd have to ask if she could take a bath, since she desperately needed one. Did she smell? Oh Lord, she hoped not...

She opened the door, peeking out, and Pohl instantly saw her, grinning, and came to the door,"Let's see how you did."She moved aside so he could come in, and he whistled, seeing all the crates pushed up against the wall in a nice, neat line,"It looks great! You did a good job."

"I'm pretty tired."She stated blandly, though she was beaming with pride.

"Of course. Let's get you some food, and you can rest up until tomorrow."

She stopped him before he could lead her out,"Actually, I'd like to take a bath, if that's alright. I feel really gross."

"I'm sure the boss wouldn't mind, let me run it by him first though. You can eat while you're waiting."

She sighed, but nodded in agreement,"Fine, I can live with that..."

As the exited the room, heard one more voice, echoing in her mind, clear enough to make her close her eyes in misery.

"_Will… You marry me?"_

_**A/N: *Solo training of kata is the primary form of practice in most styles martial arts. You perform the katas slowly or quickly, depending on your teacher/master's preference. My teacher likes to go in slow motion, and lemme tell you; it's pretty hard to hold a high crescent kick off the back leg for over ten seconds without falling on your face.**_


	5. Eeew

_**A/N: So... Any questions? I'm hoping everybody knows what's going on in this story. If not, then I'm screwed.**_

_**RESPONSES TO ANNONYMOUS REVIEWERS.**_

_**Martha: You simply MUST play Suikoden! At least the first two! They're for the first PlayStation, but you can always find one of them at a used game store for pretty cheap if you don't have one already, and certain models of PS3 will play the game, I believe, though I'm not 100% sure, since I prefer old-school systems. I INSIST that you play it someday! Hahaha.**_

_**Durarara lover: Thank you so much!**_

_**Seria cluce: Thank you! I will do my best!**_

_**AlmaFoleen: Thank you very much for reading!**_

_**Buran: Thank you for reading, and sorry for my poor update timings!**_

_**Please enjoy!**_

"You're telling me that this kid is a doctor?"

So far, Erika was hardly impressed with the fort she was a prisoner in. Her night had been rather stressing after she ate her supper, which consisted of some sort of slop that resembled porridge, in her cell. She may be a little stuck up due to be living quite well with her adoptive parents, and expected a bit more than she should, but when it came to baths, she appreciated a decent place that she could bathe in peace without the fear of men walking in on her, or peeking on her. Yes, she did get permission to bathe, but there was only one area there designated for that, and it was an outdoor, drum can bath that was hidden behind the Mercenary Fort. Her only assurance that nobody would peek was that Flik and Viktor gave 'strict orders' to their soldiers to not go back there until she was done. She stood for an hour, bathing awkwardly in a rusty drum can, looking all around her like a paranoid idiot, checking for peepers.

Now she was being told that the doctors she was promised was actually a little boy that stood no taller than her waist, and she was about 5'5''. He was as pale as pale could be, making his raven black hair, kept in a bun under an orange cloth, contrast with his skin and warm brown eyes. The clothing he wore made her raise a brow, reminding her of some form of Chinese clothing, consisting mostly of yellow and red, with some sort of white apron over his chest. The red shorts and dark blue socks nearly made her think he was a girl, until he was introduced by Viktor as Tuta.

"Apprentice." The boy corrected, a smile never leaving his face.

She plopped back on the crates, "And why did you say I need a doctor's apprentice?"

"Because we found you floating in a river. Shut up already and let the kid check you out." The gruff mercenary leader grunted.

She rolled off the edge, landing neatly on her feet, sighing lightly, "Let's get this over with; Pohl has chores for me to do."

The boy took her wrist, placing his fingers on her pulse, "Her heartbeat is fast." then he dragged a finger across the length of her forearm, before moving it to her forehead, "Skin is dry, and she has a slight fever." He looked to Viktor, "Has she been irritable or confused?"

The man nodded, "Both, actually. Crankiest brat I've ever met. She doesn't even know anything about the City-State or Highland."

"That's because they're not real." Erika said in a sing-song voice, "And even if they were, I told you that I have amnesia, so I wouldn't remember!"

Tuta let her go, and dug in a black doctor's case on the ground next to him, "She's dehydrated. It's getting close to serious, but I have some medicine that'll fix her up by tonight. Be sure she drinks plenty of water and she'll recover nicely." He handed her a vial full of a bright green liquid, "Drink this, please." As she raised it to her lips, he began to speak to Viktor again, "Do you need anything else?"

Before he could answer, there was a horrible retching sound, followed by a coarse, "Eeeeew."

_**Reminiscence...**_

Once she was deemed well enough after nearly throwing up the horribly bitter medicine, Erika was all too eager to escape her cell to complete chores. It was a gradual process, but she was slowly beginning to accept this dream, taking it in full stride without much more complaint. She might as well do something, rather than sit around in her cell waiting to wake up from her fainting spell. Once she awoke, she would have to rush home to adoptive parents, and this dream would be completely forgotten by the next day. Why fight it?

"Two pairs of boots, three flints, and two bags of flour."

Erika stared at Pohl, crossing her arms and raising a brow at him, "What a mix. Throwing flaming boots at somebody today?"

Not to mention she was actually feeling more friendly towards the few people she did know; at least enough to run around and do seemingly pointless errands for them.

He laughed at her jibe, and gestured to the right of where they stood in the hall near her cell, "Afraid not. You can find everything over there. The flour is upstairs though."

She shrugged giving him a small wave as she leisurely strolled along to complete her new chore for the day. Rubbing her arms, passing by the heated stall of the blacksmith, and decided that she should get the flints last out of fear that she would drop them and burn everything to the ground.

Or the fact the soldiers waiting for theirs swords to be sharpened glared at her like she was the spawn of Satan was a little too tense for her liking. Either way, that was the last goal on her list.

So naturally, she walked faster than usual while giving them all the evil eye before stopping next to the door-less room next to the stairs that led up out of the lower levels, and peered inside. There was many wooden crates stacked neatly in columns, with a variety of labels and box conditions. Some were brand new, looking clean and untouched, while others looked as though they had been sitting there for a few hundred years, complete with mold. She made a face at the damp smell that hit her nose, but kept her complaints to herself; it could be worse. Or so she told herself.

"What do you want?" A brusque voice snapped from behind her, making her jump, and whirl around, "Stop creeping around the entrance to my store room!"

It was a woman that addressed her moodily, pushing past her to stand in the center of the room. She was short, and portly, wearing a simple pink dress with a yellow apron that seemed to belong in the Medieval Era, and a green cap hid some of her reddish-brown hair. She was simple looking, but she looked ready to clobber Erika if she tried anything funny. The younger adult stuck her hands in her pockets to make sure she didn't accidentally touch something she wasn't supposed to.

"Um, Pohl wanted me to get two pairs of boots." Erika shifted slightly, moving away from the doorway and stepped inside the room cautiously.

The woman looked at her with critical brown eyes, before nodding to her flip-flop clad feet, "I'll make that three. Sandles ain't got a place in this fort."

She looked down at her feet and wiggled her toes, "Thank you?"

"Get over here, let's see if we got anything that'll fit you." The woman waved her over, gesturing for her to sit on some crates, "The name's Barbara, I'm the Storage Keeper around here."

"I'm Erika Mayflower," She hopped onto the designated crate, leaning back comfortably, "The prisoner around here."

Barbara paused in her rummaging, "The spy Viktor brought in? You're just a kid."

"I'm nineteen." Was the grumbled response, "And I'm not a spy. I don't even know where I'm at."

"A couple miles west from Ryube Village."

"What country?"

"The City-States, of course!" Erika nearly groaned out loud as she was handed a pair of leather boots and a pair of coarse, woolen socks that ended just below her knees, "Did you hit your head or something?"

Erika simply shrugged as she pulled the items on, "Possibly. They fit a little snug, but it'll loosen up once I wear them awhile."

"Good, good." The woman gave her a leery look, "How can you not know for sure if you hit your head?"

She laughed a little, wondering how many times she would have to explain that she was memory-less, "I have amnesia. Could have been a head trauma, or something happened and my mind went berserk trying to suppress it, I guess? I'm not a doctor, so I have no idea."

"I suppose that makes sense." Barbara placed her hands on her hips, "You don't look much like a spy, anyways. Where you in the wrong place at the wrong time?"

A flash of the dead boy she had seen flashed through her mind, along with remnants of that smoke filled night, and she instantly tried to force the memory back, "You have no idea." She felt uncomfortable, sitting there under her gaze, so she quickly spoke again, "Thank you, by the way."

She waved it off, sitting two more pairs of boots beside her, "Just don't cause any trouble."

"I'll try not to."

"And don't let Viktor bully you!" She waved a finger at her, "He actually has a soft spot for kids."

Erika laughed for real this time, finding this hard to believe, "But I'm not a child!"

The woman placed a hand on her shoulder, "I don't know where you really came from, or what your background is, but as long as you have eyes like yours, you'll always be a kid inside."

"I'll take that as a complement." She stood, "I better go get the rest of Pohl's stuff, before he thinks I tried to run off or something."

Barbara nodded in agreement, ushering her out as she gathered up the boots, quickly leaving the room with a bounce in her step. So far, she had met only a few people the she deemed decent enough, and two were women; loud and bossy women mind you. She mused over her encounter as she trudged up the steps into the upper level her eyes falling on a large set of double, wooden doors, her eyes lighting up like the Fourth of July, but she quickly told herself no, shaking her head with a sigh.

"Stop that, you'll never be let out if you make a run for it every chance..." She mumbled to herself, and stood on her tiptoes to examine the room, wondering where she could find flour up here.

"That's the way to think!" She nearly shrieked and barely stopped herself from throwing the boots at the one who hard startled her, "You'll be let loose sooner if you cooperate, so keep being a good girl while we figure out what to do with you."

Viktor grinned down at her from the stairs above her that she assumed must lead to his room in the upper levels, and she couldn't help but glare at him, but it didn't bear as much hostility as her previous ones, "You scared the crap out of me."

He laughed, walking down to meet her in the center of the room, "Yes, well, you'll live through a lot worse." Slinging an arm around her shoulder, he her back where they had ate the day before, "I need you to do something for me."

"Hey, I'm already doing chores for Pohl, what more do I gotta do for you? Free labor only goes so far, you know." She retorted, eying his arm around her shoulder warily.

"Hey, I'm feeding you and paid for your medicine, which wasn't exactly cheap. Cut me some slack."

She rolled her eyes, "Yes, thank you for paying for that awful medicine that nearly made me hurl. Appreciate it."

"Hey, you're better now. Less bratty, at least."

"_Erika… Thanks for being a brat."_

Groaning, her knees began to wobble as a spinning sensation hit her like a truck, bile rising in her throat. The world began to move too fast, circling her body as it descended towards the ground, but it was all quickly changing before her fluttering eyes. She was fading from consciousness, but she could distinctly see that Viktor barely managed to catch her before she slammed down. She could see that Leona moved from behind the bar, running towards them with Flik close behind. She could feel herself convulsing lightly, a cold sweat breaking across her skin as Tuta barreled through the quickly gathering throng of people.

Erika was aware of all of this, but her mind was not there to respond. She was flying through the vast space of her mind. It was as though somebody was showing her a million movies at once, and all of them were moving at a blinding speed, flashing by her in the tones of sepia. She caught many images of what she was certain to be herself, at varying ages and appearances. Most of the time she was with a girl, who was similar in looks to her, a boy that looked like a younger Jowy, or a teenage boy that looked vaguely like-

"_I am sorry. You cannot remember everything. Your mind simply cannot bear the burden just yet. But soon, Sweet Child of Destiny. Soon."_

Erika couldn't bear the pain as most of those memories were ripped from her mind, along with the image of somebody very close to her aching heart.

_**Reminiscence...**_

A blinding light sent Erika flying backwards, her train of thought escaping her as she hit the dirt hard, her body automatically rolling to the side as she coughed painfully. She wanted to just lay there on the dirty ground, wallowing in the ungodly pain in her chest; did something kick her? Her eyes wandered around her, moving in slow motion as she took in the sight of a beat up building, surrounded by an expanse of trees and meadows. The building was simple, with wide, bamboo doors that looked like it belonged in an oriental country, and if she thought about it, it looked similar to dojos she had seen in books. There were staffs leaning against it's stone walls, along with wooden practice swords and pales full of water, confirming her thoughts.

"_Get up, Erika! You're not finished yet!"_

Oh, did that voice sound familiar, but she didn't want to obey, but her body began to move on it's own, shoving itself to its feet – wait. Why was she holding two wooden tonfas? The arm-length weapons were clenched tightly in her hands by their handles, so that they could spin smoothly next to her forearms without striking herself, and tipped with sharp bits of metal, but they had been wrapped with cloths to prevent serious injuries to her sparring partner. How did she know this information? She never held a set of tonfas before in her life! Yet her she was, her body moving on its own accord, the weapons held in her hands as if they were merely an extension of her arms.

"_Nice kick, Jowy."_

Her mouth formed the words, and her voice spoke them in her clear, crisp accent. An accent she had thought faded. That was quickly forgot as she laid eyes on Jowy, the boy who had saved her life. Why was he here? What was going on? Confusion seemed to be her best friend, as it never left her as she ran forward, the tonfas swinging swiftly as she slammed them down against his blue quarter staff and her leg sot forward, forcing him back. How was she doing this? She couldn't fight! But she didn't didn't relent, her attacks raining down on Jowy without mercy, and she could tell he was having difficulty blocking. But how! How did she know!?

"_Yeah! Go Erika! Keep your feet steady Jowy!"_

Erika wanted to turn her head to see where the more feminine voice than the first one she heard was coming from, but her head would obey. Nothing would. She couldn't control her body!

She jumped back, blocking an attack and struck the back of his knees, _"I got you!"_

He fell, but there was a smile on his face as he laughed the fall off, bringing himself back up slowly as he dusted himself off, preparing to say something, but noticed something behind her and waved, _"Oh, you're back early-"_

She was flung towards the sky, landing once more on the hard ground, but this time, it was cobblestone, and her nose had cracked against it, breaking with a painful crack, just as a foot collided with her ribcage. What was going on? Where was she? What was happening to her? She could only catching a glimpse of a figure looming above her through the blood pouring from her nose. Her head was tilted back and to the side in an odd position, allowing it to flow into her eyes, the substance burning her pale brown eyes and she wanted to scream and wipe it away. No sound escaped her throat, and her hands crossed over her chest protectively instead. Was that a wiser choice? Her arms absorbed most of the blows, protecting her vitals as best as they could.

"_How does it feel to be down in the dirt? I bet it's a perfect place for a scumbag like you."_

"_The stupid bitch can't even answer! A coward just like her father!"_

"_Coward's daughter! Coward's daughter!"_

She didn't answer. She couldn't have answered even if she could come up with the words. She felt too weak. Everything ached, alerting her to the fact that they must have been beating on her for quite some time, but despite the heaviness in her bones, and the burning fire in her muscles, her body began to move, shuffling onto her stomach. Her arms reached out, grasping cobblestones, and pulled her forward, her blood quickly pooling in the crevices and mortar. How did she find the strength to move? She wanted to do nothing more than to curl up in herself protectively!

"_Look at her crawl like the snake she is!"_

Reaching a wall, she had began to pull herself to her feet, but a foot stomped down on her arm, and with a groan, she was down on her back once more. She blearily stared up at her attacker, who was nothing more than a black silhouette, and she felt calm. Her fear should have been peaked, her terror making her scream and fight for her life, but she did nothing, and gazed upwards. It was as if she knew something was coming. That maybe, somebody was coming.

And she was right.

"_What do you little creeps think you're _doing_?!"_

"_Shit! It's Nanami! Scram!"_

Her attackers had scattered, and she could feel herself laughing lightly despite her pain. She knew this person could always be accounted for, even as she saw a girl with chin length brown hair sprint after her attackers as though she was fueled by her anger. After a few moments, the girl returned, kneeling in front of her, pinching Erika's bleeding nose for her to stop the bleeding. The girl's brown eyes was full of kindness as she gave her a tired, yet relieved look. That girl would always be there for her, no matter what.

Just for her.

Waiting.

_**Always**_.

_**Reminiscence...**_

The first thing Erika recalled was a horrible screeching sound that made her want to claw out her eyes to use as earplugs. The second thing she recalled was the fact that she both needed her eyes and they probably wouldn't work well as earplugs before she bled out. The first thing she _realized_ was that she was the source of that horribly grating sound and that it was absolute murder on her throat and vocals cords, so it was better to shut up now before she actually busted somebody's eardrum.

"Oh, thank _God_. I thought _I_ was the one dying." Viktor's rough voice sounded awfully close, scaring her into screaming again, jerking up at the same time, making him flail about to cover his ears, "Would you stop that?!"

She clamped her mouth shut, smothering the sound, but her heart was still pounding a thousand miles an hour. Her mind was a whirlwind of thoughts, wondering where she was, or what had just happened. Was she still being kicked while she was down? Was she being rushed to someplace where she would get medical attention? Where those simply more memories, brought on by this dream world? Where they even real memories?

Feeling her nose gingerly, and sighing when she felt it was perfectly straight, "I don't know what's real anymore..." She could feel the tears well up in her eyes, and she drew her knees up to her chest, burying her face in her arms, "I just don't know..."

Viktor coughed awkwardly, obviously not used to seeing tears, and a hand touched her shoulder, making her flinch, but she looked up regardless, seeing Flik with a gentle look on his face, "Listen, I don't know what you've been through, nor do I think I could ever imagine what its like to not remember anything, but I can assure you that this is real. You, me, the Bear-"

"Hey!"

She smiled at the two, and allowed Flik to wipe away the tears on her cheeks, then squeeze her shoulder in a form of offering comfort, "Trust me. We're all really here, and this isn't a dream."

"_Trust me."_

So many people were being unlawfully kind to her. Offering her to trust them with her life, and she knew that she could. These people, all of them, were worthy of her trust. It was something that touched her heart in a way she never knew possible. It was an odd sensation, but it warmed her to the core, and she could only nod her head, accepting this fact, for fear of making some weird noise that sounded like a dying cat.

"Thank you." She whispered, and he backed away, giving her space, and she stretched out her legs, stunned as she noted that she was sitting on an unusually soft surface.

Looking around, she saw that she was laying on a bed, much to her surprise, and seeing her look of confusion, Viktor spoke up, "We moved you to Flik's room. I would have let you in my room, but it's, well..."

"A disaster?" Flik offered from his spot next to a window, as he leaned on a tidy bookshelf.

"Yeah, pretty much. Thanks, Blue Lightning, for being so subtle."

"I try."

Erika laughed, the sound foreign on her lips, but it felt right. She was feeling comfortable now. No longer was she in an unknown area with enemies all around her. She was in a safe haven, where she could recover from her memory loss, surrounded by the comfort of friends and allies. There wasn't a way in Hell she wanted to leave her comfort-zone in this unusual world.

"By the way, Erika..." Viktor cleared his throat, eying her with a grin, "You know how Pohl wanted you to go get flour at our general store?"

She had to think for a moment to gather her thoughts, but nodded in acknowledgment, "Yeah, and I needed to grab some flints for him too."

"Well we're fresh out of flour around here, and I was thinking a little fresh air might do you good." He stated, placing a knapsack on the bed, "This here has everything a new adventurer will need in the big world. There's sleeping furs, some first-aid, some breads and cheese and dried meats, a flint stone for starting fires, and lots and lots of medicines for when you get your ass kicked."

Staring at him blankly, she could only form one word.

"What?"

_**A/N: Any guesses on the romantic interest in this story? Let me know in the reviews (if you feel generous enough)!**_

_**For the You Set Me Free fans who happen to read this too; I'm working on it! I want it to be freaking AWESOME so I'm taking longer with it than I should. Don't sue or kill me!**_


	6. Lions and tigers and ohmygodwhatisthat!

_**A/N: Made it to twenty reviews! Thanks so much for your support, everybody! And thank you for making it an even number! I hate odds. **_**O3O**

_**Sorry for a late update! But hey, longest chapter yet!**_

_**Martha: If you have a friend with a PS3 and a PSP, you can apparently buy stuff off of the PlayStation Market-deal-thing, and Suikoden 2 would only cost about ten dollars, or that's how my friend explained it. Otherwise, buying the original game and a original PlayStation, PS2, or PS3 would be your best bet. A used PlayStation tends to be anything from 10-50 dollars in my area at used games stores or Goodwill. The game can get pretty expensive since it's older, but it is completely worth it! I'd mail you my copy if my friend hadn't run off with it several years ago. XD**_

_**IMPORTANT NOTICE: I'll be rewriting the first four chapters of this story! I read them, and I feel that I could make them much better. It shouldn't take any longer than a normal update, and the important story details won't be any different. I'm just going back and making everything better. Alright? If you have any suggestions, then please let me know!**_

_**The re-writes should be finished in one or two weeks, so be on the lookout!**_

_**Disclaimer: I don't own anything except for my idea of a plot, and Erika and every other random piece of information I happen to barf out in colorful, literary rainbows.**_

_**Warnings: Strong language, violence and blood.**_

* * *

><p>"So what's your weapon of choice? You name it, we got it."<p>

It was a difficult concept to grasp as Erika stood in the center of the Blacksmith's workshop, receiving glares from everybody except Viktor, who was completely oblivious to the fact. He explained to her that they had broadswords, bows and arrows, spears, rapiers, daggers, whips, staffs, and a variety of other things that had merely added to her confusion. The first time she even held a weapon seemed like ages ago, when she first came to this dream-world, and she failed miserably in trying to wield it. She was too scrawny, lacking proper muscles to apply the proper force behind any attacks, so why should she go around swinging something that could cut off her leg?

"I don't fight..." She muttered, her face turning bright red as he gave her an incredulous look.

"How in the world do you manage to get from place to place? I'm kinda surprised a monster hasn't got you yet." He stated, scanning the racks for anything she looked like she could use.

This made her scoff, "Yeah right. Monsters." Did he think she was stupid? There was no such thing as monsters. "I think I may have fought before though. I can't really remember. I had these spin-y thingys called tonfas, I think." She waved her hands around, trying to explain herself as she spoke, "I don't know how to use anything else, honestly."

"You mean those?" He pointed to a pair tossed carelessly on top of a shelf, "Do you think you can hit something hard enough with those? I think a dagger would be easier for you."

"Can I try?" She was eager to see if she had super secret powers now that things were coming crashing back in her mind, "Can't hurt to try. If I try to whack you, you can punch me out again."

He gave her a sheepish look, but shrugged, handing the weapons over to her, "Sure, give it a go. Just don't hit yourself."

Taking them by the handles, she tested the feel of them in her hands by moving them as if she was pumping weights. It was different than the design in her dream, or memory, if it was true, appearing slimmer and quite a bit lighter than what she had seen. The mahogany colored wood looked sturdy enough, but she wondered vaguely if it had any rotted spots on the interior that would make it prone to break. Then she shook her head and wondered where in the world that thought had come from. She was sure she could use them if she needed. If somebody tried to mug her, she could use one as a bat if it all come down to it.

Carefully, she moved her arm in a slow, circular motion, her grip slack enough to allow it to spin without her letting it go flying off somewhere. It moved as she wanted it to, moving in a full circle, so she quickened the pace, moving her other arm in the same fashion, then stopped them over her forearms. She felt her confidence skyrocket, and she placed a fist on her hip, twirling her weapon with a grin at him.

"I think I'm good with these."

Then Erika smacked the back of her knee accidentally, collapsing with an 'oof!' as Viktor began to howl with laughter, along with every other witness to her stupidity, "I'm glad to know you're fine with hurting yourself!" He choked out, trying to calm himself, "But I still think a dagger would be better!"

She sat up, her face a bright red as she glared and threw a tonfa at him, "Shut up!"

"Viktor, how many times do I have to tell you to stop picking on the kid?" She heard a voice raise over the roar of the laughter, and Flik pushed through the throng of soldiers, "At least cut her some slack."

Before a hand could be offered to help her up, she was on her feet, brushing herself off with as much dignity as she could muster, "I'm not a kid! I'm almost twenty!" Snatching up the tonfa, she puffed out her chest and stood on her tiptoes to make herself look as big as possible, "I bet when I remember how to use these, I'll go Godzilla on your Tokyo!"

The reference was lost, and she could just see it flying in a tiny airplane right over their heads, but Viktor also voiced their confusion in a very eloquent, "The Hell are you talking about?"

"I'm gonna kick _your_ ass!" Erika half screeched, before turning and stomping her way up the stairs.

"I doubt it!" He called back, then added for good measures, "_Kid_!"

She screamed at him, but said nothing else otherwise, making her way over to the bar Leona stood behind, hiding her laughter towards the flustered girl, "Having fun?" Her response was something that sounded like a grunt and a choking bird, "You should eat before you depart."

"I don't feel hungry..." Erika muttered, plopping into a chair, setting her weapons beside her and thumping her head onto the counter top.

"Eat anyways."

She groaned, but sat up, resting her head on her hand as a bowl of rice was place before her, "Can I have a spoon?"

"Did you hear that?" She heard behind her as a group of soldiers passed.

"She wants a spoon. How prissy."

"It's because Highlanders can't use chopsticks." A voice over to the side stated loudly as she took the wooden spoon Leona offered her, "They think they're too proper to eat like a normal person."

It was hard to keep quite, biting back a bitter, harsh response, but she knew it would only be trouble she didn't need, so she settle for a simple, "Apparently so." Then began to quietly eat.

"Thinks she can disrespect us 'cause Viktor and Flik have soft hearts when it comes to taking kids prisoners. Why would the Highlanders want to spy on the City-State? Plotting to attack; I bet she jumped into that river to make her look innocent!"

_Her eyes fell on a boy's face, flat eyes wide in fear, and the mouth twisted into a permanent scream made her rear back, she herself screaming in terror as the image burned itself into her mind._

_"Over there!" A booming voice hollered, "I want every last maggot found and slaughtered! "There was a short laugh, "Show them how terrible the 'City-State' can be!"_

Erika closed her eyes tightly, dropping the spoon to lightly hit her temples with her fists, trying to knock the memory of the dead boy out of her mind. He stared at her, his eyes hollow, accusing her of living while he had died. He was a Highlander, as they called her. Her memory screamed that he was her fellow, killed ruthlessly by those who called themselves the City-State! He accused her of being a coward, not standing up for herself, for their proud country, but it was something she didn't even remember! The only full-length memories she had were few in numbers, and she had gotten the snot kicked out of her!

The dead boy didn't care about that though, he was only a freshly made memory that would probably haunt her forever.

"Yeah, I'm a Highlander!" Her loud, unwavering voice startled her as she felt herself stand, hands on the counter and continuing before she could stop herself, "You State _bastards_ attacked us! We had to jump in the river to avoid getting killed!"

Why did she just do that? She wasn't a Highlander! She couldn't be a Highlander! She was going to get herself killed, by the looks of rage that overcame many of the soldiers, and they didn't seem to mind the fact that they seriously outnumbered her. Her hands went to grasp her weapons, feeling that she may have to defend herself from them, but a sudden, loud bark made her and several others jump, looking towards the source, and her jaw nearly dropped to the floor.

She was blissfully reminded that she was dreaming at the sight.

Before her stood a man, and not just any sort of man, mind you! Unlike those around her in those butt-ugly, armored uniforms, he wore a sap green outfit that consisted of a button up shirt with rolled sleeves and short that stopped just above the knees. It was accented by a burnt orange bandana around his neck, and leather accents like belts, boots, gloves and a scabbard at his hip that held a simple short sword. What had shocked her was that he was a rather... Dog-faced fellow.

Really.

She was reminded of the Egyptians that used to wear the burial mask resembling a Jackal, or a new artist fad called 'anthro', or something of the sort. His face truly looked like somebody had cut off a dog's head, and attached it to a humanoid body complete with a full body of reddish-brown fur and a white tuft on top of his head. He was growling threateningly, fangs revealed, and ears laid back, and his tail – his tail! - was pointing downwards. She gaped like a fish out of water, staring stupidly at him as he placed a hand on the hilt of his sword, stepping between herself and the soldiers, his back to her.

"Viktor trusts kid, so Gengen trusts kid." He stated, growling at the end of the broken sentence.

There was a stand off, the air becoming silent and so think that a pin drop could be heard. Erika was glad that this dog-guy Gengen stood up for her, since she wasn't deluding herself; she was probably going to get her ass beat and killed, but she would break a few noses first. Hopefully. Probably not, now that she thought about it. She probably would have screamed for Flik or Viktor, curled into the fetal position, or played dead. It's nice to know that dog's would be man's best friend, even in a weird form.

"What the Hell is goin on here?!" The booming voice made the tension instantly go away, and the way everybody straightened their backs as the bear-like man came into the room nearly had Erika on the floor laughing, "I'm running a fort here; not a damn gang of bandits!"

"I have to go with Viktor on this." Flik joined him, but he turned his gaze to Erika instead of the soldiers, giving her a warning look, "What the Hell got everybody so riled up?"

None of the soldiers answered, so Erika offered her fine knowledge of the situation, "I asked for a spoon since chopsticks are stupid."

"All of this over a _spoon_?" Flik looked ready to strangle somebody, "You about got killed over a spoon?"

She shrugged, suddenly very interested in the ground as she scuffed her booted foot on it, "Okay, it sounds retarded, but apparently I'm too prissy for their," She shot the soldiers a dirty look, "tastes. It's not like I threw a spoon at them or something, who cares what I use to eat, right?"

Viktor shook his head at his men, turning to Gengen, "That true?"

"Yes, sir." He answered, but seemed more at ease than the others.

"Flik, I leave the men to your honorable self." The larger man stated dramatically, and she saw the looks of horror that covered most of their faces, so she guessed it wasn't a pleasant thing to happen.

"Start running." Was all he said, and she could just see the legs of all the men crying already as they began to shuffle outside miserably, and the man of blue followed them, shouting orders to make them move faster.

She tried her hardest to not flat out point and laugh at them for starting stuff with her.

"As for you." She gulped at the stern look she was getting, "Put the tonfas down before you hurt yourself."

Erika glared at him heatedly, but did as she was told, and crossed her arms in a pout, "Shut up, Bear."

He sighed in frustration, resisting the urge to rip his hair out of his scalp, "Listen, kid, I want to help you, but you're making it pretty damn difficult! My men are antsy, and you being a Highlander makes them even more twitchy." She gave him a scornful look, but it went ignored, "Now they're going to be waiting for a good reason to pounce on you!"

"Pfft, they were already like that." She muttered, resting her head on her hand and turning to her now cold bowl of rice that was looking rather unappetizing. Didn't they have scrambled eggs here?

"Besides, I could have _sworn_ that you were running around saying that you _weren't_ a Highlander! Now you say you are? Make up your mind right now; are you or are you not a Highlander?"

"I don't know." She ground out, facing the towering mercenary, "I don't know _why_ I said I was. Maybe you haven't figured it out yet, but there's something _messed_ _up_ with my head!" To emphasize her words, she pointed to her temples, "Can't you tell? I'm kinda _crazy_!"

Viktor shuffled his feet, looking uncomfortable as he watched her lean her back against the bar with crossed arms and a nasty glare, "Calm down. We'll figure out where you're from, so just... Don't cry."

Erika quickly lifted her hand to scrub away the frustrated tears that had begun to form, and she snapped, "I'm not crying."

"Gengen, this kid needs to get to Ryube, so why don't you take her?" Leona piped up, drawing attention away from the stressed girl.

"I'm not a kid..." She muttered, turning the ring on her left hand before plucking it off and placing it on her right hand, staring at it as if she could will it to spark her memories.

"Gengen a soldier!" The dog-man answer with a slight bark, preparing to walk away, "Gengen not babysitter!"

"You would deny the request of a fair lady like myself?" The woman lifted her brows, and pouted her lips slightly, and it made Gengen pause, "Oh please, brave Kobold warrior?"

"What the Hell is a Kobold?" Erika whispered to Viktor.

"Can't you tell?" He whispered back, "They're like you and me. Just... Furrier."

"Take me too!" Tuta called from the stairs, rushing down to join them at the bar, "I want to go too!"

"Tuta, have you finished your chores for Doctor Huan?" Leona looked at the boy with a skeptical glance.

"Yeah, he won't mind if I'm a bit late. And if I go, I can monitor Erika's health; free of charge!"

"Sold!" Viktor exclaimed, "The kid knows how to get what he wants."

"Grrr... Gengen must babysit _two_ kids?!"

"Please, kind warrior?" Leona asked sweetly.

"Alright! Gengen will do it! A Kobold warrior never denies a fair lady!"

"I just got to get Erika's canteens ready and you can be off whenever you're ready. I'm counting on you Gengen." The bear-like man stated, then turned to said-girl to ruffle her hair, "Go get your pack from Pohl."

She swatted his hand away, and he left to retrieve her 'canteen' so she stood to move along, but the Kobold was already passing her, heading towards the stairs leading below, "Gengen can get it."

"Where the Hell is that kind of chivalry back where I'm from?" Erika deadpanned, grabbing her tonfas and stuffed them in her belt.

"Oh, he's a hero back from the Kobold Village, but the whole race tends to be full of people like him." Leona answered, "I hear Highland doesn't have very many... I'm sorry. I forgot that-"

She waved it off, "Forget about it."

"You say that you have amnesia, but that's a condition I've never heard of. What exactly is it?" Tuta ask, hefting himself onto the stool next to where she was leaning against the bar, "Who diagnosed you with it and how do you treat it?"

"Amnesia is basically a complete memory loss. I remember nothing before I was found three years ago. Doctor Branford came all the way from New Jersey to diagnose me, and you can't treat it." She explained simply.

"Where is 'New Jersey'?" He asked, his face twisting in confusion.

"I don't even know where _I'm_ at. My guess is that it's off east somewhere, or at least, it was back in Thyme. Hell if I know."

"Alright! Tuta, Erika!" Gengen called from the stairs, quickly moving to stand in front of them, and handed her the satchel Viktor had gotten ready for her, which she slung over her shoulder, "You ready? Viktor is waiting outside; let's go!"

"Thanks for the food." She told the bar keeper, earning a nod and a shooing gesture.

Erika was kinda excited to be leaving the fort, since she had lost track of the days with her passing out left and right, but she could assume safely that she had been there at least a week. She was getting cabin fever! Now she got to travel to the nearest village for flour, and she could finally check with other people to see if she was at a fort with a bunch of crazy soldiers, or really in a place called the City-State.

Though once the double doors leading outside opened, she threw her arms over her eyes and dramatically cried, "I'm melting! I'm melting!"

"No you're not. It won't hurt for you to run around in sunlight, since you're so pale." Viktor stated from her right, and she peeked through her arms at him.

"I've seen worse. Ever see one of the kids with black make-up and liquid-paper-white faces? They make _me_ look tan."

"I haven't had the honor."

"Eh, nothing too amazing. More creepy than anything. They're kinda like little Vampires, the way they-"

She saw the bear-like man tense, and before she knew it, he had shoved several leather cords that canteens dangled from into her hands, and he retreated into the fort without another word, the doors slamming behind him. Blinking, she looked at the canteens in her hands, and then over to Gengen and Tuta, both of them shrugging with looks of confusion on their faces. She knew instantly that she had said something that had offended him, but she couldn't figure out what. All she was doing was talking about those kids that were Vampire fanatics. Did he have a sibling that was one of them? How was she supposed to know!

"We should go; dark falls soon." Gengen stated, patting her shoulder, and walking towards the gates of the fort.

"Yeah..." She murmured quietly, following after them. She could always apologized when she got back.

"Okay! Listen up!" The Kobold commanded as they stepped outside the gates, "It's a dangerous world out there, with lots of monsters!"

"Pfft. Monsters." Erika grumbled, then made a face. If there was dog-faced people, then monsters didn't seem so outlandish. At least it was all a dream.

"C'mon Gengen, it's not like we're going through a forest or a mountain path!" Tuta exclaimed.

He hopped in annoyance,"A warrior must always be careful! Never overconfident! Since Gengen is the leader, you call Gengen _Captain_ Gengen! Do you understand?"

"Yeah! Let's do this, Captain Gengen!"

Erika was staring off to the side, a small sigh escaping her lips as she slowly shouldered the canteens. She actually felt a little bad about saying whatever made Viktor storm away, after all, he and Flik had been unusually kind to her, and she had been causing nothing but trouble for them. Guilt struck her hard, and she could feel the tears of shame building up behind her eyes. Her fingers twisted at the wolf-ring, and her eyes screwed shut, while she once again transferred the ring to the opposite hand. She needed to apologize to Viktor immediately, but he also expected her to go get the flour from Ryube. The situation felt oddly... Familiar. Had she done something like this before? Had she offended somebody like this in her past? She wasn't very good at communicating with other people – this entire 'prisoner' situation being proof of that. She didn't doubt her ability to piss people off and-

"Erika? What's wrong?"

"Er..." She blushed under the worried stares from her companions, and managed to force a somewhat enthused look on her face, "Yes, Captain Gengen."

"Good! Now follow Captain Gengen!"

_**Reminiscence...**_

"So you _really_ don't remember anything? I find it hard to believe, even with a blunt force trauma to the head. Wouldn't the soul remember things?" Tuta called over his shoulder, standing at the top of the hill with Gengen, waiting for their final companion to make it to the top before continuing.

Erika, it turns out, was _incredibly_ out of shape, even with all of her bike riding back home. Besides that, she was a major couch potato that was rather addicted to watching movies like _Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves,_ and_ Braveheart_ and loved games like _Legend of Mana_ and _Castlevania._ But God forbid she ever went jogging; she would go into a cardiac arrest! How she was expected to keep up with the two hyperactive people she was traveling with was beyond her. It was currently high-noon, and she was already about to die; and they had only been out for a few hours! She had already passed off her pack and the canteens onto Gengen, who had no trouble with the extra weight. The only problem was her slow pace as she all but crawled to the top of the hill in the middle of the grasslands between the fort and Ryube.

"I'm telling you this one last, so if you ask me again I _am_ gonna kick your ass." Erika panted as she joined them, "I _really_ remember nothing _at_ _all_. Blunt force trauma is the _assumed_ reason, and my soul is apparently retarded because it doesn't remember _shit_."

"I smell Shadow Wolves." Gengen stated suddenly, earning an incredulous look from her, but before she could question him, he was dropping the packs and canteens, quickly drawing his sword, "Get ready, Erika! Tuta!"

"Wait- what?!" She cried, stumbling to her feet, "'Shadow Wolves'?! What are- where? I don't see any-"

Her sentence quickly became a scream as she was tackled to the ground by something colliding into her back, sending her tumbling down the side of the hill, struggling to keep a massive pair of teeth from ripping her to shreds. She was screaming the entire way, scared- no, _terrified_ that she was being attacked by what appeared to be a giant, blue-furred wolf! She couldn't believe this! This was _impossible_!

"Erika!" Gengen cried, preparing to take off to help her, but had to quickly turn to block another set of fangs, effectively knocking it back, "Tuta! Get to safety!"

The boy was already moving back, slipping on a pair of gloves before hurling a stone covered in a violet substance. It hit a wolf that was pursuing him, and it yelped loudly, falling to the ground convulsing, and frothing at the mouth. Gengen quickly counted the numbers of enemies, finding four, including the poisoned one Tuta handled. Two were stalking towards himself and there was the other one that had snuck up in Erika. He began to hope and pray that she could fend it off long enough for him to help her, turning to slice at one of the wolves trying to sneak around his back.

Erika, on the other hand, was screaming every cuss word that came to mind, holding her forearm to the wolf's neck to keep it from reaching her. She shook from the effort, and was flinching each time the abnormally large and oddly colored animal clawed at her legs and stomach, but thankfully, the rope she had wrapped around her torso was providing her with some protection. With her free hand, she fought to get a tonfa free from her belt, and once she finally succeeded, she slammed it against the side of the beast's head. It yelped loudly, jumping off of her to recover from the blow, and she scrambled to get to her feet, but shrieked loudly when the wolf lunged, its teeth clamping onto her left thigh. It jumped away once more, this time taking a part of her jeans, and a bloodied hunk of her thigh.

"AAAAGH!" She screeched, falling over backwards, and clutching at her wound, "_**Fuck**_!"

How could she feel pain in a dream? It... It shouldn't have been possible...

It was a dream...

It was... Only... A dream...

"_What if it is no dream?"_

"Okay, voice-in-my-head." She grunted, "You're apparently smarter than me. What the Hell do I do now?"

"_You must fight, Child of Destiny. Fight for yourself, and for those around you."_

She growled in annoyance, rolling away from the wolf-monster, "That's easier said than done!"

"_Listen to your heart, Erika..."_

It pounced on her, but she managed to bring her right foot up in time and sent it flying over her with a burst of adrenaline induced energy. The voice said 'listen to her heart'? How was that supposed to be helpful?! She frantically looked to the top of the hill, seeing Gengen trying to fend off two wolves on his own, and Tuta was digging through the black bag that he had brought with him. Making a noise that was full of pain and frustration, she looked to the puddle off blood pooling beneath her leg, deciding that she needed to stop the flow of blood. Once again the Shadow Wolf tried to bite her, but ducked under it, and forced herself to her feet, hopping a few feet away. Slipping into a stance that took the pressure off her injured leg, she prepared herself for the next attack, and swung one of the tonfa as hard as she could, using it like a bat.

_**CRACK**_!

Erika felt her stomach drop at the sickening sound, and she instantly dropped the weapon the moment she felt the monster's skull cave under the blow. It fell to the ground, twitching and whimpering, and she could feel the bile rising in the back of her throat. She only had a moment to feel her horror and disgust, before she felt the pressure of paws against her back, another set of fangs clamp down on her right shoulder. For what felt like eternity, she stood there in shock, before slowly turning her head, her eyes wide as she took in the sight of another Shadow Wolf. It was considerably smaller than the one she had just took down, the shade of its fur a tad lighter, but it was still able to deal considerable amounts of damage. Had this one been hiding in the taller grass?

It allowed her to get a good look at it before dragging her down, a trail of her blood following them through the air. She didn't make a sound as her back hit the ground, her hazel eyes becoming locking on the cloudless, blue sky. Had it always been such a pretty, light blue? The wolf bit again, this time taking a chunk of her right bicep, but the pain didn't register in her mind. From her peripherals, she saw the other wolf get to its feet, wobbling with the effort.

She could tell that she probably wouldn't make it out of this situation. Gengen was fighting his own, and Tuta was... What the Hell was he doing? She could bring herself to remember as her mind became muddled with darkness. Should she be praying now? What God was there to pray to? She had never thought about it before, and could feel a stabbing regret in her hip- no that was one of the wolves. What was she feeling right now? Sadness at the fact she was dying? Disappointed that she couldn't remember her past? Angry that Tuta wasn't doing anything to help besides throwing rocks at her when she was down- wait, maybe he was aiming at the wolves. His aim sucked. Not that she had any room to talk; she couldn't hit the broad side of a barn.

Would she be missed after these Shadow Wolves finished eating her alive? Would her adoptive parents notice she was gone? Probably not; there were plenty of other children that they could adopt. Would Viktor miss teasing her, and having her a his prisoner? Doubtful; she had a horrible attitude towards everybody, and had thought nothing was real. Would Gengen and Tuta miss watching her struggle with the hikes up small hills? A laughable idea; it was a pitiful sight, no doubt. Was Jowy worried about her? She missed him, even though she hadn't thought about him much after they jumped into the river. Had they met before? He seemed to recognize her.

She felt tears roll down her face like tiny rivers, and she sniffled loudly, "I guess I was wrong. This was all real..."

With those words, she could feel something awakening from the depths of her mind, and the world around her became clouded by a deep, crimson hue*. She felt her body tense, and her left hand shot up instinctively, her fist colliding with the nose of the smaller wolf, receiving a loud yelp of pain in response. A rush of adrenaline gave her the sudden strength to rocket to her feet, ignoring the sensation of fire in the areas she hurt in, and was shocked to find herself _sprinting_ towards the wounded Shadow Wolf. The girl snatched up one of her discarded tonfas, using her left hand to spin it faster than she thought possible, and by using her momentum to her advantage, she slammed the wooden weapon into the monster's neck. Blood spurt out of its mouth, and it dropped, a bone protruding from where she had struck. Turning on her heel, she managed to strike the other wolf down as it flew through the air in an attempt to pin her once more.

Before it could get back up, Erika stomped on its windpipe, gritting her teeth together as she did so. She kept her foot there for several moments, waiting for the color of red to leave her sight before her actions actually registered in her mind. Once they did, she gasp loudly, taking a limping step back; she did all of this? That wasn't possible! H-how could she, weak little Erika, take down two wolves that had previously been _kicking_ _her_ _ass_?! She was torn up and bleeding out! How the Hell did she find the strength to run around killing things?! What the Hell?! What was happening to her?!

"Erika! Erika!" She heard Tuta calling, but she couldn't hear him over the sound of her panicked thoughts. Wait, how did she end up laying down? And when did Gengen and Tuta get beside her? "Erika! I'm going to fix you right up, so just hang in there! Talk to us and _don't_ _fall_ _asleep_!"

What was she supposed to say? _Oh, I'm alright. It's just a scratch; nothing to worry about._

"That hurt like a mother-fucking son of a bitch. Did you get the license plate of that thing that hit me just now?"

Oops. She didn't mean to say that out loud.

* * *

><p><em><strong>AN: Next chapter is in Ryube! I'll work hard on getting everything updated more quickly from now on!**_

_***When Erika begins to see everything in 'crimson hues' up above, that's a reference to the status effect 'Berserk' in the game that gives characters a boost of power! 8D**_


End file.
